Contents

Science Education
Virtual Solar System
Virtual Gorilla
Elementary Ed.
Elem. & Secondary

Science Education: Elementary Education

In this study we conducted an analysis of a project based, space science curriculum designed to support elementary school students in understanding complex, inter-related astronomy concepts. The curriculum, rather than directly addressing students' alternative frameworks, focused on supporting students in identifying their own existing understanding and reflecting on how their understanding evolves over time.

Context	This was a project that was developed jointly by myself and the collaborating teacher, Mrs. Judy Morran. This was a 10 week curriculum project in which 5th grade students investigated the various astronomical phenomena. We used computer modeling software, hands-on activities, and encouraged student reflection on their learning. We assessed student learning through a series of pre-post interviews and more traditional paper-based assessments.
Conditions	This research project was grounded in the emerging field of teaching experiments in which the teacher/researcher investigates how learning unfolds within the context of a real classroom setting. The class only had 18 5th grade students, but our findings have allowed us to redesign and improve our curriculum.
Scope	This was a 10 week curriculum project in which I was both teaching and conducting research. This entailed writing reflections concerning the interactions that occurred during each class and then meeting with my co-teacher and discussing our concerns regarding student learning and how the project was progressing. Our findings indicated to us that we could support student conceptual understanding of very complex scientific phenomena if we structured our curriculum in such a way as to support student reflection regarding their understanding.
Role	I initially laid out the structure of curriculum and developed the materials needed to support the curriculum implementation. I also served as a part-time teacher and a full time researcher. As a teacher I added a strong content background and as a researcher I added a critical eye toward evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the curriculum. I conceptualized the paper and conducted the data analysis and writing of the paper.

Published Papers:

Barnett, M., & Morran, J. (in press). Addressing childrens' understanding of the Moon's phases and eclipses. To appear in the International Journal of Science Education.

Conference Presentations

Barnett, M., MaKinster, J. G., & Hansen, J. (2001, April). Exploring elementary students' learning of astronomy through model building. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Education Research Association, Seattle, WA.

Hansen, J., Barnett, M., MaKinster, J., & Keating, T. (April, 2002). Does computational 3-D modeling technologies support student learning? Paper presented at the annual meeting of the National Association of Research in Science Teaching, New Orleans, LA.